“Vidimus Stellam Ejus In Oriente”

OMETIMES WE ENCOUNTER people who put too much of their imagination into interpreting music. On the other hand, certain things seem to me undeniable. For example, Fr. Cristóbal de Morales often has a strange Tritone relationship before the word “crucifixus,” to symbolize the “dissonance” of hanging God on a cross. Then, too, Morales frequently makes his point of imitation in the very shape of a cross at the “crucifixus” section. Francisco Guerrero, a student of Morales, was outstanding in his text painting.

I’m often skeptical of “text painting” claims. People will say, “Oh, the melody descends, so that means such-and-such.” But many melodies descend, and it means nothing! On the other hand, who would deny the text painting on the word REVÓLVIT?

If you examine the Communion for Epiphany (“Vidimus stellam ejus”), there seems to be an attempt at text painting on the word ORIÉNTE:

The composer (or later editor) might be trying to give an “oriental” flavor to those words, and the best way he could think to do so is a Tritone. For the record, “ad Oriéntem” occurs in the Communion for Ascension Thursday, and a similar figuration was used.